The 2004-05 London Knights never stopped winning from puck drop to Memorial Cup final on home ice.

In 2011-12, the Knights lost their head coach to the NHL and still went until March without back-to-back defeats.

Last year, they reeled off a franchise-record 24 straight victories.

This season’s Knights, Memorial Cup hosts once again, still have the outside chance to do something that would elevate them up there with the most memorable three in team history.

This current five-game win streak, capped by a 5-4 cliffhanging victory in Barrie on Saturday night, provided a glimmer of hope the fourth-place Knights can roar all the way back and finish in first place overall in the standings.

They have to be near perfect and need the Erie Otters, Guelph Storm and Soo Greyhounds, who all rarely lose, to stumble once in a while down the stretch.

The Knights have a favourable schedule the rest of the way, with two road games in Erie, including Saturday, that boil down to must-wins.

Finishing first in the division is the key to playoff success in the OHL the last decade.

This year, the Western Conference is a treacherous ride through a white-water canyon with a broken paddle. You’re in danger even in times when it feels like you’re sailing along the right path.

The Knights have reeled off five wins in a row but Guelph and Sault Ste. Marie have won nine of 10.

The Windsor Spitfires have won six straight and are cementing themselves into fifth place, which means no home ice advantage and a brutal first-round opponent.

The top teams in the Eastern Conference are rooting for the Knights to win the West, because it will mean a free trip to the Cup in May if they only win their side.

But they have come to realize this is no longer 2005. No one is a gimme to go the distance anymore.

There are, as London head coach Dale Hunter likes to say, a lot of good teams.

The best news for his club is they have regained their scoring touch and re-established themselves as road warriors.

Gemel Smith has 10 points in his last six games after recording one assist in his first five after arriving from Owen Sound.

The Knights believe Smith is going to be a major contributor these final three months.

Nikita Zadorov finally looks like the player again who was an all-star for Russia at the world junior tournament and Michael McCarron has perked up, with six points in his last five games.

“I think everyone’s finding their role and we’re all doing the little things right like we weren’t doing earlier in the season and it’s starting to pay off,” McCarron said.

Goalie Jake Patterson is holding the fort, which is what he’s being asked to do until Anthony Stolarz recovers from his leg cut.

There is some resiliency in this veteran-laden group of teenagers, the core of which has played a ton of hockey the past three years.

Max Domi, who didn’t play after his second-period penalty in North Bay, was the first star the following night in Sudbury and scored the game-winning goal in Barrie.

The Knights have been filling the net and chasing goalies since the Hunters brought in shooting and skill specialist Tim Turk, who is expected to return this week.

The only worriesome part of the three-game northern swing was the penalty kill, which surrendered seven of the 10 goals.

But the Knights have shown the ability to make the necessary changes.

They were able to kill off the late Ryan Rupert head-checking penalty in Barrie with the game on the line.

The Knights aren’t rubbing shoulders with Erie and Guelph yet, but they’re back within shouting distance.

First place, which seemed like an impossibility two weeks ago, isn’t so far away anymore.